Live Grenade Found in Auctioned Self-Storage Unit in Bartow, FL

A self-storage auction buyer found a live grenade on Wednesday while sorting through the unit contents he purchased at New Highlands Self Storage in Bartow, Fla. The explosive device had been stored in a box labeled “caution live grenade,” according to facility manager Juan Perez.

The Polk County Sheriff’s Office and state fire marshals responded to the emergency call, and an X-ray determined the grenade was live and dangerous. The self-storage facility at 2385 E.F. Griffin Road was shut down for about three hours during the incident. The fire marshal’s bomb squad disposed of the grenade later in the day, according to the source.

Perez described the auction buyer as “pretty shaken up,” and said the discovery of the grenade was a first for his facility. "We found weapons in a unit, but [a] live grenade to that magnitude? No," he said.

Fire marshals are continuing the investigation, including a search for the defaulted tenant of the auctioned unit.